Fahrenheit #5: Entire Book Questions #2 (Spoilers!)

Directions:  If you would like to respond to this prompt as one of your blog posts, you need to give a detailed, text-oriented response to at least three of the questions below.  Be sure to number them.  Remember, you may also respond and build on others’ comments.

1.      Montag turns to books to rescue him; instead they help demolish his life -- he loses his wife, job and home; he kills a man and is forced to be a nomad. Does he gain any benefits from books? If so, what are they?

2.      Do you believe, as Montag did, that Beatty wanted to die? If so, why do you think so?

3.      Since the government is so opposed to readers, thinkers, walkers, and slow drivers, why does it allow the procession of men along the railroad tracks to exist?

4.      Once Montag becomes a violent revolutionary, why does the government purposely capture an innocent man in his place instead of tracking down the real Montag? Might the government believe that Montag is no longer a threat?

5.   What does Granger mean when he says, "We're going to go build a mirror factory first and put out nothing but mirrors for the next year and take a long time to look at them?" Why would "mirrors" be important in this new society? (Note: In Part 1, Clarisse is said to be "like a mirror.")

Fahrenheit #4: Entire Book Questions #1 (Spoilers!)

Directions:  If you would like to respond to this prompt as one of your blog posts, you need to give a detailed, text-oriented response to at least three of the questions below.  Be sure to number them.  Remember, you may also respond and build on others’ comments.

1. "Don't look to be saved in any one thing, person, machine, or library," Faber tells Montag. "Do your own bit of saving, and if you drown, at least die knowing you were headed for shore." How good is this advice?
2. Unlike Mrs. Hudson, Montag chooses not to die in his house with his books. Instead he burns them, asserting even that "it was good to burn" and that "fire was best for everything!" Are these choices and sentiments consistent with his character? Are you surprised that he fails to follow in her footsteps?
3. Beatty justifies the new role of firemen by claiming to be "custodians of [society's] peace of mind, the focus of [the] understandable and rightful dread of being inferior." What does he mean by this, and is there any sense that he might be right?
4. How does the destruction of books lead to more happiness and equality, according to Beatty? Does his lecture to Montag on the rights of man sound like any rhetoric still employed today?
5. Why does Montag memorize the Old Testament's Ecclesiastes and the New Testament's Revelation? How do the final two paragraphs of the novel allude to both biblical books?
6. Are there any circumstances where censorship might play a beneficial role in society? Are there some books that should be banned?
7. If you had to memorize a single book or risk its extinction, which book would you choose?

Fahrenheit #3: Discussion Questions through Part Two: The Sieve and the Sand

Directions:  If you would like to respond to this prompt as one of your blog posts, you need to give a detailed, text-oriented response to at least three of the questions below.  Be sure to number them.  Remember, you may also respond and build on others’ comments.

1. Why would society make "being a pedestrian" a crime? (Clarisse tells Montag that her uncle was once arrested for this.)
2. One of the most significant of the many literary allusions in Fahrenheit 451 occurs when Montag reads Matthew Arnold's poem "Dover Beach." What is the response of Mildred's friends, and why does Montag kick them out of his house?
3. One suicide and one near-suicide occur in this book. One woman, who shuns books but loves TV and driving fast in her car, anesthetizes herself,; "We get these cases nine or ten a night," says the medical technician. Another woman, who cherishes her books, sets herself on fire with them; "These fanatics always try suicide," says the fire captain. Why would two people who seem to be so different from each other try to take their own lives? Why does suicide happen so frequently in Montag's society?"
4. Beatty tells Montag that firemen are "custodians of peace of mind" and that they stand against "those who want to make everyone unhappy with conflicting theory and thought." How well are the firemen accomplishing these objectives? Are conflicting ideas the only source of unhappiness in their society? What other sources might there be? Can conflicting ideas exist even without books that have been destroyed and outlawed?
5. Captain Beatty quotes history, scripture, poetry, philosophy. He is obviously a well-read man. Why hasn't he been punished? And why does he view the books he's read with such contempt? How can Beatty's knowledge of and hatred for books be reconciled?
6. Why do you think the firemen's rulebook credited Benjamin Franklin-- writer, publisher, political leader, inventor, ambassador--as being the first fireman?
7. Why does Beatty program the Hound to track Montag even before Montag stole the book? Do you believe Beatty had seen him steal books before? Or is it that Beatty had detected a change in Montag's attitude or behavior? Cite incidents in the book that support your answer.

Discussion Questions: The Hearth and the Salamander

Directions:  If you would like to respond to this prompt as one of your blog posts, you need to give a detailed, text-oriented response to at least three of the questions below.  Be sure to number them.  Remember, you may also respond and build on others’ comments.

1. Montag comes to learn that "firemen are rarely necessary" because "the public itself stopped reading of its own accord." Bradbury wrote his novel in 1953: To what extent has his prophecy come true today?
2. Clarisse describes a past that Montag has never known: one with front porches, gardens, and rocking chairs. What do these items have in common, and how might their removal have encouraged Montag's repressive society?
3. What do the firemen “do” for a job?  According to pages 3-4, what does Montag think of his job?
4. During his conversation, Montag tells Clarisse that "You never wash it off completely" referring to the kerosene. What could this mean symbolically?
5. Why do you think that Bradbury would introduce Clarisse before Montag's wife, Mildred?  How is Clarisse different than Mildred?
6. What is the mechanical hound and what is its purpose?  What is the hound's reaction to Montag?  What does this foreshadow?
7. On page 40, Beatty reveals something very important about himself and his knowledge. What is it?
8. Who is Mildred's "family"?  How does she spend her days?  How does she fall asleep at night?
9. What has happened to Clarisse? How did it happen? What is unusual about the way Mildred told Montag about Clarisse?
10. Read pages 55-62 very carefully. They contain great truths about our world. List three things Beatty talks about in his speech to Montag that are true about our world and elaborate on those topics.

Censorship Reflection

Directions:  If you would like to respond to this prompt as one of your blog posts, you need to answer all questions below.

1. List ten books you have read.  If you can’t think of ten, list books you have either heard about or seen the movie version.
2. Look at your list of ten books.  Write down any reason you think people might want to ban or censor each work.  Reasons could include (but are not limited to) social, political, or religious content, profanity, sexual situations or identities, or violence.
3. Are there any authors you can think of that have never had their books banned?  Explain your reasoning (hint:  you have all read something by this author in school).
4. How would life be different if there were no books? Would things be better or worse? Why? Would life be easier or harder? Why? Would your life change? How?  Respond in 5-7 thoughtful sentences.